ARC Feature Post and Book Review: The Grapevine by Alexandra Sokoloff and Craig Robertson

Book Description

How far would you go to find your missing child?

Lou Gomersall’s going as far as it takes. And there’s no turning back.

When her nineteen-year-old daughter Abby disappears, Lou embarks on a reckless road trip in the family RV, scouring the highways and back roads of California. Through desert and mountains, into the woods, and to the ocean’s edge.

A year later, the police don’t believe Lou’s theory that four other missing young women have been taken by the same elusive predator. So, when another college sophomore vanishes, Lou jumps on the fresh trail, enlisting millennial #vanlifers, Gen Z entrepreneurs, boomer RVers, homeless sages, truck stop prostitutes, and everyone in between in her do-or-die mission to rescue Abby …

Or kill the man who took her.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/242618196-the-grapevine?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=otLlbOPnrB&rank=3

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

THE GRAPEVINE (The Lost Highway Book #1) by Alexandra Sokoloff and Craig Robertson is a tension-filled thriller featuring a mother who will go anywhere and do anything to find her missing daughter. This is a collaboration between two authors I have enjoyed reading individually, so of course I was excited when I was asked to read this book.

Lou Gomersall’s daughter, Abby, is missing without any clues. Leaving her husband at home, she takes the family RV and begins scouring the highways and byways of California. She collects any mention of other missing young women and uses the network of other people on the road living the van life, campground operators, and even prostitutes at truck stops to search for connections. Even when the police are skeptical and tell her to stay out of the cases she has found and go home, she continues. She refuses to believe her daughter is dead, no matter how crazy she seems or acts.

Lou is on a mission to save Abby and kill the man who took her.

Lou is such a memorable protagonist. You have empathy for her, you feel sorrow for her, you cheer her on even when she seems or acts crazy, and you keep hoping with each revelation she discovers the truth of what happened to all the missing girls, not just Abby. All the secondary characters are believable, and I was glad she had Ethan in the second half of the book to help her search for clues and try to keep her more grounded in reality. The plot pace continuously builds as more pieces of the puzzle of the missing young women cases are revealed. The ending chapters kept me on a rollercoaster of emotions and left me completely shocked and not expecting the revelation at the climax of the crime plot and I love it when that happens. I am not sure what these authors and this series will have instore in the future, but you can definitely count me in.

I highly recommend this emotionally charged, edge-of-your-seat crime thriller!

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About the Author

Alexandra Sokoloff is a Bram Stoker, Anthony, and Black Quill Award nominated author of the supernatural thrillers The Harrowing, The Price, The Unseen, Book of Shadows, The Shifters, The Space Between, and the bestselling Huntress/FBI Thrillers series. As a screenwriter she has sold original horror and thriller scripts and adapted novels for numerous Hollywood studios. She is a California native and a graduate of UC Berkeley. 

Social Media Links

Website: https://alexandrasokoloff.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlexandraSokoloffPage#

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexandrasokoloff/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/alexandra-sokoloff

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About the Author

Craig Robertson had a twenty-year career as a journalist with a Scottish Sunday newspaper before becoming a full-time author. His gritty crime novels are set on the mean streets of contemporary Glasgow. His first novel, Random, was shortlisted for the 2010 CWA New Blood Dagger, longlisted for the 2011 Crime Novel of the Year, and was a Sunday Times bestseller. Murderabilia was longlisted for the 2017 Crime Novel of the Year and shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize. The Photographer and Watch Him Die were longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize.

Social Media Links

Simon & Schuster Author Page: https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Craig-Robertson/69815753

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/375796.Craig_Robertson

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/craig-robertson

Book Review: Have a Bear-y Little Christmas by Roxie Ray

Book Description

When a grizzly shifter and a human woman collide at the town ice rink, Christmas gets complicated—fast.

They’re both single parents. Both a little broken. And both about to find out that fate doesn’t care about timing—it only cares about love.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/244210172-have-a-bear-y-little-christmas?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Cs0TvsW4yv&rank=1

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My Book Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

HAVE A BEAR-Y LITTLE CHRISTMAS by Roxie Ray is a beautiful paranormal romance story featuring a grizzly bear shifter widowed father of two young girls and a single human mom of a young son who has entered remission from cancer. The holiday season theme is prevalent as the time of the first meeting and then renewed over the two-year span of the story. This is a standalone Christmas holiday romance with all the adult relationship emotional ups and downs and three young characters who are all enchanting.

Jeannie Wolfe is a single mom with a young son in cancer remission. Their financial situation is difficult, but Jeannie is determined to give Max as normal as possible Christmas now that he is home.

Remington LeBeau has been widowed for eighteen months and even though he and his two young daughters had been waiting for their mother’s death from a genetic disease, it has taken time to adjust to their new normal. He has tried to make the transition as easy on his girls as possible and only focused on them.

Jeannie and Remington both decide to take their children to a free community skate. When one of Remington’s girls is injured, Max comes to the rescue. The three children instantly form a bond which leads to Remington and Jeannie spending more time together. Jeannie is reluctant, with her past overshadowing her present and Remington is not sure if he is ready for another romance, besides his bear-y secret, but the children are determined to become one happy family.

I really loved this paranormal romance. It did not follow the usual path but really dug into complex feelings that both Jeannie and Remington are dealing with and the children had issues of their own which were integrated beautifully into the story. The shifter revelation in the story was a new and pleasant take on the discovery for me. This book is not an easy holiday romance, but it really pulls you into hard, realistic relationship issues in an empathetic way. The love of family is the guiding light of this story with fully developed characters that shine.

I highly recommend this holiday paranormal shifter romance!

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About the Authors

Roxie Ray is a collective of romance authors known for steamy, imaginative Paranormal & Alien Romance, specializing in shifter, vampire, and alien love stories with found family, strong alphas, and fantasy worlds. They’ve penned numerous popular series like Black Claw DragonsBears of Forest Heights, and Lunarian Warriors, offering readers a blend of magic, action, and heartwarming romance. 

Key Aspects of Roxie Ray’s Work:

  • Genre Focus: Paranormal Romance, Alien Romance, Sci-Fi Romance, Fantasy Romance, often featuring shifter and vampire themes.
  • Common Tropes: Soft/kind alphas, curvy heroines, found family, slow-burn romance, and magical elements in everyday settings.
  • Writing Style: A group effort, aiming for steamy, captivating stories with intricate plots and emotional depth.